8,200 cast their early vote in 85% turn out ahead of 26th March

Mar 20 2022

A total of 8,224 voters headed to the ballots to cast their vote in Malta’s early voting session for the 2022 general elections on Saturday.

The 8,224 number translated into a turnout of 85.15% for the 9,658 voters eligible to vote in the early phase.

Voters in this category were people who cannot attend the official 26th March ballot due to being abroad or hospitalised. Among them was EP President Roberta Metsola.

The turnout of early voters indicates a lower turnout than the previous election in 2017. That election saw a 91.7% turnout for the 4,250 eligible voters.

The 2017 early voting phase saw 4,173 cast their ballot in the initial round, with 3,384 of 3,991 people living in elderly homes casting their vote early.

Surveys concerning the election have now constantly hinted at there being a lower voter turnout for the general election. With a gap of around 37,000 votes between parties, if the early voting phase is anything to go by, then the same could translate on the 26th of March.

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Malta will aid food importers to prevent hiking prices says Abela

Mar 19 2022

Addressing a political rally, Prime Minister Robert Abela said Malta will grant major food importers financial assistance to prevent price hikes.

This is in order to ensure Malta is adequately stocked due to the crisis caused by the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Abela confirmed the government struck a deal with the major importers of wheat, cereals and nuts, saying that the deal will see his administration providing importers with ‘necessary liquidity’ to stock up at the Kordin Grain Terminal.

This will stop products such as bread and milk from becoming more expensive. Abela compared the reaction of international markets in reaction to the invasion of Ukraine and the aftermath of the pandemic in March 2020.

He reiterated how countries restricted the exportation of wheat and cereals as supply decreased and prices increased. Abela said that Malta used the same principles which the government learned to apply so well after two years of COVID to ensure the inflation impact will be as minimal as possible.

The PN proposed last September a €40 million state fund to help importers deal with the increases in cost of transporting goods.

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Address all impacts of climate change urges ADPD’s Cacopardo

Mar 19 2022

Malta’s Green Party ADPD warned on Saturday that strategies need to urgently mitigate the impact of climate change on health, agriculture and other sectors.

This is because, according to ADPD Chairperson Carmel Cacopardo, the political discourse on climate change has only so far concentrated on reducing carbon emissions.

Cacopardo said that the climate was already changing and it would take time for adaptation measures to have an impact, provided that they are in fact implemented.

Underlining the warming of the Mediterranean region at a rate 20% faster than the global average, Cacopardo said that a number of sectors will be gradually impacted by the ‘tropicalisation’ of our climate.

He said that rainwater harvesting needs to be properly addressed to enable people to harvest more rainwater instead of dumping it into the sea to the public sewer. He called on the Water Services Corporation and the Planing Authority to ensure that water cisterns are provided in all new developments in line with development permits.

Agriculture is the largest user of water all over the Mediterranean, said Cacopardo. ‘As an island it is crucial to a dress coastal protection, even in view of the fact that most of our tourism infrastructure lies along the coast’ he said.

He said that warmer temperatures could also result in heightened exposure to disease which could put additional stains on health services. This needs to be planned for, said Cacopardo, highlighting how the elderly and vulnerable persons would be among the hardest hit.

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Demand for Abela’s anti-abortion pledge by Doctors for Life

Mar 19 2022

A group of doctors who campaign against abortion expressed concerns about Labour’s pledge to revise Malta’s sexual health policy.

Doctors for Life said that the wording in the PL’s pledge was unclear and could thus imply that the party intended to include abortion in its pledge to respect ‘sexual and reproductive rights.’

This is in reference to proposal 506, which states that the party is committed to publishing an updated sexual health policy as soon as possibly. ‘The policy should reflect modern-day realities when it comes to health and sexual and reproductive rights, in all their diversity. We will also create an action plan with targets, measures and clear deadlines to hold the government accountable for implementing this policy’ it reads.

In a statement on Saturday, Doctors for Life said that the terminology used in the pledge was concerning. They urged the Prime Minister to explain what the party meant by ‘sexual and reproductive rights’ and ‘categorically exclude abortion from this definition.’

The island’s current sexual health policy was published in 2010, with work to revise it beginning some years ago. It was however scrapped last year as it was being based on research which was 12 years old.

The organisation said that it would remain politically neutral but that it would be advising the electorate that supporting proposal 506 of the manifesto ‘may be endorsing the future legalisation of abortion.’

Abela has previously stated that his against abortion but said that debate about the issue should not be politicised. He also expressed anger at political party ABBA reporting pro-choice activists to the police.

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